Intestinal parasitic infections and predisposing factors among prison inmates in Southern Ghana: A cross-sectional study.

Background And Aims: The environment within prisons, such as overcrowding, lack of access to portable water, poor sanitation, and hygiene predisposes inmates to infections, including intestinal parasitic infections (IPIs). This study therefore determined the prevalence and associated factors of IPIs among prison inmates in Southern Ghana.

Methods: A cross-sectional study using the stratified sampling technique was employed.

In-school adolescents' sociodemographic correlates of serious unintentional injuries in Saint Vincent and the Grenadines: A cross-sectional study.

Background: As a public health concern, serious adolescent injuries constitute considerable global morbidity and mortality. Despite the proliferation of literature on this problem, the evidence on the determinants of injuries among in-school adolescents in Saint Vincent and the Grenadines (SVG) is insufficient.

Method: The study analyzed data from the 2018 Global School-based Student Health Survey to examine the prevalence and determinants of serious injuries in a nationwide adolescent sample in SVG.

Postpandemic fear of COVID-19, psychological distress, and resilient coping among frontline health workers in Ghana: An analytical cross-sectional study.

Background And Aims: The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic has significantly impacted the psychological well-being of healthcare workers globally. However, little is known about the mental health state of frontline health workers in the postpandemic era. The purpose of this study was to examine postpandemic COVID-19-related psychological distress and fear among frontline health workers in Ghana.

PROTOCOL: The impact of infrastructure on low income consumers' nutritious diet, women's economic empowerment, and gender equality in low-and middle-income countries: An evidence and gap map.

This is the protocol for an evidence and gap map. The objectives are as follows: this evidence and gap map (EGM) aims to identify, map, and provide an overview of the existing evidence and gaps on the impact of different types of physical infrastructure on various outcomes of low-income consumers' nutritious diet, women's economic empowerment, and gender equality in low- and middle-income countries. The specific objectives of the EGM are: (1) identify clusters of evidence that offer opportunities for evidence synthesis and (2) identify gaps in evidence where new studies, research, and evaluations are needed.

Implications for conservation assessment from flux in the botanical record over 20 years in southwest Ghana.

At best, conservation decisions can only be made using the data available at the time. For plants and especially in the tropics, natural history collections remain the best available baseline information upon which to base conservation assessments, in spite of well-documented limitations in their taxonomic, geographic, and temporal coverage. We explore the extent to which changes to the plant biological record over 20 years have changed our conception of the conservation importance of 931 plant taxa, and 114 vegetation samples, recorded in forest reserves of the southwest Ghana biodiversity hotspot.

Monkey pox: Rethinking COVID-19 to project future strategies against emerging and evolving pathogens.

COVID-19 Monkey pox, days like these need planning.

coinfection is associated with improved IgE and IgG3 response against hookworm antigens.

Background: and Hookworm infections are prevalent in West Africa and they cause iron deficiency anemia and protein malnutrition in Children. Immune response of these parasites interact and their interactions could have repercussions on vaccine development and efficacy. The current goal of hookworm eradication lies on vaccination.

Influence of substrate formulation on some morphometric characters and biological efficiency of EM-1 (Ex. Fr) Kummer grown on rice wastes and "wawa" () sawdust in Ghana.

A study was conducted to correlate the stipe length, cap diameter, and growth yield (fresh weight) of the fruiting body of strain EM-1 using different rice lignocellulosic wastes and "wawa" () compost: raw unamended rice straw; rice straw amended with 1% CaCO and 10% CaCO; rice straw amended with 1% CaCO and 10% CaCO supplemented with 5, 10, and 15% rice bran prior to bagging; rice straw and rice husk mixture (1:1 w/w) amended with 1% CaCO and 10% CaCO supplemented with 5%-15% rice bran prior to bagging; and wawa sawdust amended with 1% CaCO and 10% rice bran. The experiment was laid out in a completely randomized design in a well-ventilated semi-dark room at 26-28°C and 60%-65% ERH. The fresh weight, length of the stipe, and cap diameter increased differentially in each treatment with an increasing period of composting in the substrates.

Assessing the role of eosinophil-mediated immune response markers in detecting hookworm infection: A case-control study in Kintampo, Ghana.

Background And Aim: Human hookworm disease caused by and is a serious public health problem. Hookworm infection activates eosinophil-mediated tissue inflammatory responses, involving the production of the eosinophil-specific chemokine (eotaxin), recruitment of eosinophils, secretion of the cationic protein, and production of antiparasite immunoglobulin E (IgE). We investigated eosinophil-mediated immune response as markers (CCL11, eosinophil cationic protein [ECP], and IgE) for detecting hookworm infection.

Time-dependent multivariate and spectroscopic characterisation of oil residue in Niger Delta soil.

In this paper, we present a detailed evaluation of changes in the oil residue in soil following a spill using weathering indices obtained from analytical instruments such as UV, IR, GC, and H NMR, and chemometrics based on the time of spill in the Niger Delta region of Nigeria. UV, IR and H NMR spectra of eight (8) oil residue samples were analyzed. The PCA of the UV and IR spectrometric index showed that the first two PCs accounted for 87 and 71% of the variance of the index, respectively.

Ultrasonic-assisted extraction of bioactive chlorogenic acid from heilong48 soybean variety: Parametric optimization and evaluation of physicochemical and bioactive properties.

Chlorogenic acid (CA), especially that found in soybeans, is a rich bioactive compound but has received very little attention in research settings in past decades. Ultrasonic-assisted extraction (UAE) could be an efficient method to increase CA release from soybeans. Hence, this study aimed to optimize UAE parameters for CA extraction from heilong48 soybean (HS) variety and evaluate the physicochemical and bioactive properties of the soybean.

Mycobiota profile, phenology, and potential toxicogenic and pathogenic species associated with stored groundnuts ( L.) from the Volta Region, Ghana.

This study updates the mycobiota resident in groundnut seeds, their phenology during storage with the view to ascertain their occurrence, potential toxigenic species, and pathologically important species in the stored samples. The moisture content of the seeds ranged from 5.7% to 6.

Single-frequency ultrasonic extraction of bioactive chlorogenic acid from heilong48 soybean variety: Parametric optimization and comprehensive evaluation of physicochemical and bioactive properties.

Chlorogenic acid (CA), especially that found in soybean, is a rich bioactive compound but has received very little attention in research settings in past decades. Ultrasonic-assisted extraction (UAE) could be an efficient method to increase CA release from soybean. Hence, this study aimed to optimize UAE parameters for CA extraction from heilong48 soybean (HS) variety with comprehensive physicochemical and bioactive properties evaluation.

The effect of vinegar and drying (Solar and Open Sun) on the microbiological quality of ginger () rhizomes.

This study evaluated the influence of 10% vinegar and solar drying using two solar dryers and open-sun drying on the microbiological quality of ginger ( Roscoe) rhizome. The rhizomes were analyzed for bacterial, mold, and populations in the raw state, which were water-washed and soaked in 10% vinegar, and in dried form. The fungal population was isolated and identified.

Effect of pretreatment on physicochemical, microbiological, and aflatoxin quality of solar sliced dried ginger ( Roscoe) rhizome.

Pretreatment of fruit and vegetables is necessary to reduce microbial proliferation and to preserve color of the produce. The effect of drying and pretreatment with potassium metabisulfite (KMBS) of concentrations 0.0%, 0.

Effect of complementary foods fortified with leaf powder on hemoglobin concentration and growth of infants in the Eastern Region of Ghana.

Complementary foods that are deficient in both macronutrients and micronutrients coupled with a high burden of infections during the complementary feeding period are major underlying causes of child malnutrition in developing countries. Among the recent efforts to combat malnutrition by improving the quality of complementary foods in the developing world is the use of leaf powder (MLP) as a food fortificant. We conducted a randomized controlled trial to test the effect of feeding MLP-fortified complementary food on hemoglobin concentration and growth of infants and young children after 4 months of feeding.

Signatures of competition and strain structure within the major blood-stage antigen of in a local community in Ghana.

The concept of niche partitioning has received considerable theoretical attention at the interface of ecology and evolution of infectious diseases. Strain theory postulates that pathogen populations can be structured into distinct nonoverlapping strains by frequency-dependent selection in response to intraspecific competition for host immune space. The malaria parasite presents an opportunity to investigate this phenomenon in nature, under conditions of high recombination rate and extensive antigenic diversity.

Mycofloral profile and the radiation sensitivity (D values) of solar dried and gamma irradiated (Jacq.Ex. Fr.) Kummer fruitbodies stored in two different packaging materials.

The presence of fungi in our foods poses serious health risks as some genera of fungi may produce certain mycotoxins which have carcinogenic, mutagenic, teratogenic, and immunosuppressive effect on humans and animals alike. Fruitbodies of were solar dried at a moisture content of 12.5 ± 0.

Fiscal Incidence in Ghana.

We use methods developed by the Commitment to Equity Institute to assess the effects of government taxation, social spending and indirect subsidies on poverty and inequality in Ghana. We also simulate several policy reforms to assess their distributional consequences. Results show that, although the country has some very progressive taxes and well-targeted expenditures, the extent of fiscal redistribution is small, but about what one would expect given Ghana's income level and relatively low initial inequality.

Consumer knowledge, preference, and perceived quality of dried tomato products in Ghana.

Postharvest losses (PHL) are incurred in the tomato value chain in Ghana and solar drying of tomato is a promising technology for reducing the loss. However, there are concerns on the usage, functionality and sensory appeal of the dried products to consumers, compounded with the lack of information and research on dried tomato processing in Ghana. A survey was carried out by administering semistructured questionnaires to 395 randomly selected and willing respondents in the Accra Metropolis.

Influence of low dose of gamma radiation and storage on some vitamins and mineral elements of dried oyster mushrooms ().

Mushrooms contain some of the most potent natural medicines on the planet. Vitamins A, C, D, Mineral elements, contents, as well as total soluble solids (Brix) of dried composition of were investigated after exposing to gamma radiation doses of 0 (control), 0.5, 1, 1.

The relationship between emotional intelligence and job satisfaction among nurses in Accra.

Aim: The aim of this study was to examine the relationship between emotional intelligence and job satisfaction among nurses in Accra, Ghana.

Methods: A correlational study was conducted in Ghana in 2015. The study conveniently sampled 120 registered general nurses (83 females and 37 males) from three public hospitals located in Accra.

Micronutrient composition and acceptability of leaf-fortified dishes by children in Ada-East district, Ghana.

, a green leafy vegetable, is a good source of minerals and vitamins which could be consumed as part of diet to improve human health and well-being. Drying leaves could make it readily available for use as a food fortificant. The objectives of the study were to determine micromineral and -carotene content of dried leaves, and leaf-incorporated local dishes, and also assess school children's (4-12 yr) acceptability of dried leaf-incorporated local dishes and feasibility of introducing dried leaves into a school lunch menu.

Development and quality characteristics of shelf-stable soy-agushie: a residual by-product of soymilk production.

A process was developed for the production of a high-protein food ingredient, soy-agushie, from the residual by-product of soymilk production. The product, with a moisture content of about 6%, was evaluated for its quality characteristics and performance in traditional dishes. The protein content was about 26% with similar amino acids content as that of the whole soybean.